Here at Waveformless Soundware, we don't just want to sell you sounds, we also want to teach you how to make your own! We'll share helpful programming tips here for all the softsynths we create sounds for, so check back frequently!
The arpeggiator in Synapse Audio's DUNE is, in many ways, more similar to a step sequencer than a straight-up arp. Indeed, you can actually program two separate sequences to play at once if you so desire. One area that might not be an obvious application for this sequencer/arp is to simulate the multiple transients required when making a convincing electronic 'clap' sound. As the factory presets illustrate, DUNE's architecture lends itself well to recreating classic Roland drum sounds. In my new soundset, DUNE Spiceflow, you'll find a sound called DRM The Clap TS, which is, as you might expect, an electronic clap sound. So how do you achieve this type of sound?
Start by putting both OSCILLATORS into SEL mode under the wave selection. Make sure the drop-down menu use to select the expanded waveforms is set to OFF, thus turning off both of your oscillators. Now, set your NOISE level all the way up. You can experiment with using different COLOR settings. I find higher settings a bit more faithful to the Roland sound, where lower settings sound "synthier".
Throw your FILTER into BP12->LP12 mode and set the CUTOFF to near 0. Set the filter OFFSET to about -18% and set the filter ENV amount to about 95%. On your FILTER ENVELOPE, set ATTACK and SUSTAIN to 0, with DECAY at about 50% and RELEASE at around 68%. Set your AMPLITUDE ENVELOPE to similar settings. If you play a note now, you should here a short, percussive noise.
Select the ARP PAT page from the central display and program the first 4 notes to C1. Set the sequence STEPS to 4 and the MODE to ONE SHOT. This means that with the ARP activated, it'll play 4 notes right after one another in a single burst. So the only thing we need to do is to make those nights fire off as quickly as they would occur in a real handclaps sound. Try setting the arp's RATE to around 70Hz.
Now head over to the AMP section and select the ARP button to turn the arpeggiator sound. If you play a note now, you should be rewarded with something that sounds an awful lot like the old TR-808 clap sound.